This invention is related to an air-operated apparatus for raising or lowering a passenger, and more particularly to a passenger-carrying spherical body seated on a semi-spherical base, and air operated means for elevating the body on a cushion of air from the base up through a tube to a predetermined height above the base.
Motion simulators employed in amusement devices and flight simulators usually comprise a hollow body or frame for receiving a passenger. The body is then moved through a series of motions to simulate flight through the air. Such devices are commonly used for training aircraft personnel. Other devices are used as amusement devices with a video screen that presents images consistent with the simulated flight.
The frame is mounted in a cradle or base and rocked or otherwise horizontally moved, usually without any substantial vertical displacement. One device in which the body is horizontally moved is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 2,344,454, issued to Plotner in 1944, and disclosing a spherical shell floating on a body of water with controls for rotating the shell about its center.